


Best-Laid Plans

by GooeyHeat



Category: Touhou Project
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-04
Updated: 2019-10-04
Packaged: 2020-11-23 03:31:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,122
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20885429
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GooeyHeat/pseuds/GooeyHeat
Summary: Sekibanki asks Kogasa out, and Kagerou and Wakasagihime want to make sure everything goes perfectly for their friend.





	Best-Laid Plans

**Author's Note:**

> This idea just kinda walked straight into my head, fully-formed, so I figured I'd get it out there.

It was a bright morning in the early summer. The sun shone down through the light fog that eternally emanated from the Misty Lake, illuminating the still-cool air in an ethereal glow. On the shore of the lake, on the opposite side of the infamous Scarlet Devil Mansion, three youkai were happily talking.

The first youkai floated in the lake's water, leaning her arms on the shore, her large tail that took the place of legs lightly floating. She was Wakasagihime, the mermaid of the Misty Lake, and she was cheerfully chatting with the two youkai on the shore.

The second youkai sat about as closely as she could to Wakasagihime without her long, brown hair or full-body black, white, and red dress touching the lake's water. The top of her head was adorned with two triangular brown ears, giving away her youkai nature. She was Kagerou Imaizumi, the werewolf of the Bamboo Forest of the Lost, and she was Wakasagihime's girlfriend. The two of them were mostly dominating the conversation, chatting about the goings-on of Gensokyo.

The third youkai could easily be mistaken for a regular human at most times. Her short red hair was adorned with a large blue bow on the back of her head, and her simple black shirt and red dress were adorned with a short red cape that came up so high as to cover the bottom of her face. This is what allowed her to pass as a human, as she was a rokurokubi, a youkai who could stretch her neck, detach her head entirely, make it fly, or even make copies of it. Her name was Sekibanki, and compared to her two friends she was relatively quiet, only speaking up when she felt she had something to add.

"Oh my god, I'm SO glad those beast spirits aren't all over the place anymore," Kagerou said, rolling her eyes. "All those wolf spirits were so aggressive, and they kept asking me to join them? Like, first of all, I'm spoken for, and even if I weren't, I definitely don't want to hang around with brutes like that. I'm a WEREwolf- that means I'm not just some dumb animal!"

"All those otters were a pain, too. They kept scaring away all the fish in the lake. I barely got to eat!" Wakasagihime added. "I hear the shrine maiden had to go all the way to Hell to deal with them, too. Sounds crazy."

Sekibanki leaned back on her hands and looked at the sky, letting the conversation wash over her. It's not that she wasn't interested; she was just someone who chose her words pretty carefully. She thought back to when she first met her friends, when after getting provoked into aggression due to the Miracle Mallet and promptly beat down by the Hakurei shrine maiden, she ended up running into Kagerou, who had done the same. Kagerou invited her to something she called the "grassroots youkai network," which ended up just being the three of them hanging out and gossiping. Sekibanki was the type of youkai who appreciated her alone time, but having a few friends that appreciated her company had turned out to make her happy, too. And then, of course, there was the other friend she had made even more recently...

"Sekibanki?"

Someone calling Sekibanki's name broke her out of her reverie. She looked at Kagerou and Wakasagihime, before realizing the voice had belonged to neither of them. Turning to the source of the sound, she was greeted with a teal-haired girl in a matching blouse and skirt, who was carrying a purple umbrella with a big red tongue hanging off. She was floating in the air lightly, and as she touched down on the ground, she gave a little wink and stuck her tongue out.

"Kogasa? What are you doing here?" Sekibanki asked.

"I could ask you the same!" Kogasa gave her umbrella a little twirl. "But anyway, I finished a smithing order early this morning and decided I just needed some fresh air, so I figured I'd drift on down by the lake." At this, she noticed Kagerou and Wakasagihime looking at her. "Oh, I'm sorry, where are my manners? My name's Kogasa Tatara!" she said, giving the same wink-and-tongue expression she put on earlier.

"I'm Kagerou Imaizumi, and this is Wakasagihime," Kagerou said casually.

"It's a pleasure to meet you!" Wakasagihime added.

"Likewise!" Kogasa turned towards Sekibanki. "Your friends are lovely. I guess I shouldn't be surprised, though!"

"Huh? Oh, uh, yeah." Sekibanki shrunk down in her cloak a bit, hiding a slight blush.

Kogasa leaned her umbrella against her shoulder. "Well, I shouldn't keep you, should I? I wanted to head around towards the forest anyway. It's really such a lovely day for a walk, after all."

Sekibanki nodded tentatively. "Y-yeah. It was nice of you to, uh, drop in."

"See you later!" Kogasa said as she held up her umbrella and began to float off.

"Bye," Sekibanki said quietly. She watched Kogasa go for a few seconds, then turned towards Kagerou and Wakasagihime, only to be greeted with a pair of mischievous smiles. "...what?"

"Oh, nothing, nothing," Kagerou said, her smile not fading. "She seemed nice. How'd you meet her?"

"We were both trying to scare people outside of the village. She really wasn't that good at it, though... but we got to talking anyway."

"Do you two hang out often?" Wakasagihime chimed in.

Sekibanki shrugged. "Oh, every now and then, I guess."

"So how long have you had a crush on her?" Kagerou asked.

"Well, I- WHAT"

Sekibanki sputtered incomprehensibly for a few seconds, leaving Kagerou and Wakasagihime to giggle. Eventually she managed to get something that could pass for a sentence out. "I, uh, I don't have a crush! Th-that's silly!"

Wakasagihime flipped her tail up a bit. "Aw, come on, it's understandable; she's definitely cute~"

Sekibanki seemed to sink further into her cloak. "I-I don't think she's cute, with those red and blue eyes, or that little wink she does, or the way she gracefully twirls her umbrella, or..." She trailed off, realizing the sheer depth of the hole she was digging was being reflected in her friends' faces. Sekibanki sighed. "It was that obvious, huh..."

"Are you kidding? You said it was nice of her to 'drop in' after she literally floated down from the sky. I've never heard you make a joke that corny. You've got it bad, girl." Kagerou put an arm around Sekibanki. "Luckily, you've got us. How about I give you some advice?"

Moving past her embarrassment a bit, Sekibanki smirked. "What, are you gonna tell me to bite her?"

"Hey, that was ONE TIME!" Kagerou exclaimed, letting go of Sekibanki and sitting back down next to the water.

"Besides, I'm the one who does most of the biting these days!" Wakasagihime chimed in.

"_Didn't need to hear that!_" Sekibanki retreated back into her collar once again as her two friends laughed.

"You should take her on a date!" Wakasagihime said. "Or at least ask her to hang out more formally than just running into each other at random."

"That... sounds like a big step," Sekibanki said cautiously.

"Oh! I just got a great idea!" Kagerou exclaimed suddenly.

"What is it, what is it?" Wakasagihime bounced excitedly in the water.

"How about you go on a picnic by the lake? That way you don't have to worry about dealing with other people, and you can be someplace familiar!"

Sekibanki rose a bit higher out of her collar. "That's... actually a pretty good idea."

"Yeah, I agree!" Wakasagihime said. "Plus it means we can help out! I've already got great ideas on how Kagerou and I can help make this date just perfect!"

Sekibanki shook her head. "Alright, let's slow down a bit. You know I appreciate you guys doing things for me, but I think it would be better for me to just handle this my way. Just to keep things simple, y'know?" She got up and stretched a little. "Anyway, I think I should be able to catch up to Kogasa if I head towards the forest after her. I'd rather get this started sooner rather than later, and I'll probably need to do a bit of food shopping. I'll see you guys later, okay?" Sekibanki took off towards the forest at a somewhat quick pace, leaving Kagerou and Wakasagihime by themselves.

The two looked at each other for a few seconds until Wakasagihime spoke up. "So... we're totally helping her out, right?"

"Oh, of course. Believe me, she'll thank us later."

Two days later, around noon, it was another beautiful sunny day by the Misty Lake. Sekibanki stood in the sun, holding a wicker basket and looking around nervously.

_Ugh, I'm so nervous,_ she thought. _I hope she shows up soon, because this anticipation is killing me._ She peeked in her basket again, as if the contents would run away if she didn't check on them. _Fish sandwiches, fresh vegetables, this "iced tea" stuff that kappa convinced me to buy, and some fresh water in case that's a bust. _Everything was still there, as expected. Sekibanki returned to scanning the area. _Where is she, where is she, it's not like she's late, but where is she... there!_ Some distance away, there was Kogasa, walking slowly and looking around.

Sekibanki tried to call to her, but her voice got caught in her throat. "K-Kogasa!" she managed to croak out, not as loud as she'd hoped.

Kogasa turned towards Sekibanki's voice. "Hey!" she yelled, giving a big wave. She then skipped into the air, floating towards Sekibanki as if carried by a light breeze, before landing on her feet just next to her.

"Hi," Sekibanki mumbled. "H-how are you?"

"Great!" Kogasa said brightly. "It's lovely out. It really is nice over here; I see why you hang out here so often!"

"Hehe, yeah..." Sekibanki paused for a moment, looking around. "This looks like a good spot," she continued, pulling a blanket out of her backpack and laying it on the ground. The two sat down on the blanket facing each other, and Sekibanki started reaching into the backpack.

"Oh! Before we start, I have something for you!" Kogasa reached underneath her umbrella and pulled out something she had affixed inside. It was a small pink flower, attached to a hair clip. "I, uh, I saw this in a shop in the village yesterday, and I thought it might look nice on you! If-if you wanted to wear it, I mean."

Sekibanki reached for the clip, her hand slightly shaking as she took it and affixed it to her hair. "...Thanks," she said after a moment. "It's cute."

"O-oh! Good!" Kogasa went quiet for a moment.

The two of them sat in silence for a few more seconds before Sekibanki remembered her plan. "Uh, right, let's get the food out..."

"Y-yeah!"

The two of them began their picnic in earnest, unaware that they were being watched.

"Oh my god, Waka, Kogasa just gave Banki a hair clip with a flower on it!"

Some ways across the water, on a pile of rocks, Kagerou sat, observing with her sharp eyes and strong hearing. In the water next to her was Wakasagihime, doing her best to watch as well.

"That's what that was? Oh my, she does like her back!" Wakasagihime clapped her hands together. "We might not even need to help after all!"

"Don't be silly. They're still super nervous. They definitely need a push. You remember the plan?"

"Of course!"

It was a simple plan. Wakasagihime would fire some water into the air above the picnic, leaving it suspended as a light mist. Kagerou would then fire some weak magic into the mist, creating light that would disperse into a rainbow. It would be a lovely romantic sight for Kogasa and Sekibanki, and it would give them something to remember.

Wakasagihime and Kagerou put their plan into action, playing their parts perfectly. Shortly, there was a lovely rainbow passing just over the picnic, creating a picture-perfect scene. Surely, Kogasa and Sekibanki would notice soon.

Any minute now.

"Have they seen it yet?" Wakasagihime asked quietly.

"No, they haven't looked up yet," Kagerou grumbled, rolling her eyes. "I can keep this up for a while, but I'd still rather this didn't go to waste." She squinted at the picnic in the distance. "Come on, you awkward girls, look up!"

Wakasagihime giggled. "Maybe they're just so in love that they can't take their eyes off of each other!"

"I wish," Kagerou responded. "But they're still nervous and quiet. The date's flopping, Waka! They need to see the rainbow!"

"I'm sure it's fine, Kagerou. Don't you remember our first date? That wasn't the most amazing love story either, after all!"

"I seem to remember it being PERFECT and WONDERFUL, thankyouverymuch."

Wakasagihime leaned against the rocks. "Was that before or after Yuuka Kazami chased us out of her garden with an onslaught of lasers?"

Kagerou turned towards Wakasagihime. "Hey, we didn't get hit once on the way out! And that was WITH me carrying you! What's more perfect than that?" She looked back towards the picnic. "Ugh, they STILL haven't looked! What's the deal?"

A loud voice behind them spoke up. "Ooh, are you trying to make it rain on that picnic? That's a pretty good prank!"

The two youkai turned around to be greeted with Cirno, the infamous ice fairy of the Misty Lake, floating behind them with a big smile.

"Uh, no, we're just-" Wakasagihime started, but Cirno interrupted her before she could explain.

"It seems like you might need my epic strength to make this prank the best it can be. Watch this!"

"Cirno, wait!" Kagerou called, but Cirno wasn't listening. She flew above the picnic.

"Now HERE'S how you prank a picnic!" Cirno declared, extending her arms forward and opening her palms. At her command, the air chilled around the mist hovering above the picnic. The tiny droplets grew and hardened into hailstones, which began to fall towards Kogasa and Sekibanki.

At that moment, Kogasa finally happened to look up. "Look out!" she yelled, grabbing her umbrella and diving towards Sekibanki. The hail bounced off of Kogasa's umbrella as she covered them both.

"Bwa ha ha ha ha!" Cirno laughed an ugly laugh as she flew back towards Kagerou and Wakasagihime. "Did ya see the looks on their faces? That was amazing! Thanks for the help!" Her smile faded after not being returned. "Hey, what are ya looking so mad for?"

"You've ruined everything! I'm gonna kick your ass!" Kagerou yelled. She flew into the air and pulled out a spell card.

Cirno's face curled into a smirk. "I dunno what I did wrong, but if you think you can face the strongest fairy and come out on top, then you're in for a rude awakening! Bring it, ya mangy mutt!"

"W-wait! What about the date?" Wakasagihime called after Kagerou, but she didn't hear. She and Cirno flew up and began firing magic blasts at each other, soaring over the Misty Lake away from the shore where Kogasa and Sekibanki were having their picnic. "Oh, what a mess..." Wakasagihime sighed, diving underwater and following the fight.

Sekibanki was confused.

One second they were eating fish sandwiches and drinking iced tea (_it really is the best kind of tea for a hot day,_ Sekibanki had thought), the next second Kogasa was holding her close and covering them with her umbrella. Sekibanki had heard the sound of objects hitting the umbrella, but her mind wasn't in a state to figure out what it was thanks to the much more pressing issue of _oh my god Kogasa is holding me we're so close what do I do what do I do_.

Eventually, she managed to push out a question, though it was really just single word. "...Kogasa?"

After a second, Kogasa jolted backwards. "Ah! I'm sorry! A fairy tried to prank us by dropping ice on us, and I figured I'd cover us, and I just... I... I'm sorry, I'm sorry..." Her cheeks were red as she trailed off.

Sekibanki sat up straight and took a deep breath. "Kogasa," she said, prompting Kogasa to look at her.

"H-huh?"

A slight blush formed on Sekibanki's cheeks. "I... I didn't... dislike being that close..." she mumbled.

Kogasa's entire face turned beet red. She opened her mouth to speak, and then closed it again, realizing she wasn't anywhere close to having a response that made sense.

Sekibanki went on. "In fact, I asked you here today because... because I like you, a lot, and I want to be close to you more..."

Kogasa's eyes lit up. "I-I like you a lot too, Sekibanki!" she said. Both of them slowly smiled as they took each other's hand for a moment.

After a comfortable silence, enjoying the contact and the sunshine Kogasa spoke up. "How about we finish our lunch?" she asked cheerfully.

"Ah... yeah," Sekibanki responded.

"Stupid fairy with her stupid ice and her stupid pranks," Kagerou grumbled as she sat back down on the rocks in the lake. "We went through all that trouble and she ruined it."

"I guess we'll need to apologize to Sekibanki," Wakasagihime said, leaning up against the rocks.

"I'd prefer if that fairy apologized, but I doubt I could get her to do that," Kagerou sighed. "That date could've gone so well, too."

Wakasagihime glanced towards the shore, and then did a double take. "Kagerou! Look at the shore!"

"Huh?" Kagerou looked across the water and was greeted with a surprising sight: Kogasa and Sekibanki holding hands. "Holy crap! They did it!"  
Wakasagihime clapped her hands. "Aww, they're adorable..."

"It went perfectly after all! We won't need to apologize!"

"Oh, yes you will..."

Kagerou and Wakasagihime jumped as they turned around and saw Sekibanki's head floating behind them. "O-oh! Sekibanki! What... brings you out this way?"

"Don't give me that. I told you I didn't need your help."  
"W-well, we... I..." Kagerou sputtered.

Sekibanki's head sighed. "That said... that little stunt actually helped push Kogasa and I a bit closer. So, as much as it pains me to say it... thanks."

Kagerou and Wakasagihime sat silently for a second, until Wakasagihime spoke up. "Wait, so you two are, like, a thing now?"

"Yeah."

Kagerou's eyes lit up and she smiled another mischievous smile. "Do you know what that means?" she said, looking between Wakasagihime and Sekibanki's head. Suddenly realization showed in Wakasagihime's eyes, and she smiled too.

"WE CAN GO ON A DOUBLE DATE!" they yelled simultaneously.

"Oh nooooooooooooooooooooooooo..." Sekibanki's head sighed, floating down onto the rocks and laying on its side.


End file.
